Veneers, But Not As We Know Them …

July 16, 2018

We wrote about some fabulous new veneers at a trade show we attended in March, and we’ve finally received our own set of samples.

Many of us are used to the idea of veneered elements in furniture manufacturing. The benefit of using a high quality veneer on a stable substrate is that the finished product is evenly matched and the tone is uniform. Staining timber pieces can be a little more hit and miss, as the components may be cut from different sections of the raw material, with grain slightly different from piece to piece. This means that stains are taken up to a greater or lesser extent, leading to a wide variation in the overall look and finish. Unless timber selection is absolutely ruthless, some lighter and darker timber elements will stand out, and this can be disappointing.

It’s common to find veneered centre panels in shaker style kitchen doors. However, it’s more unusual to come across a completely bespoke kitchen, where all the doors are finished in the same stunning precious veneer. Since we are not tied to one manufacturer, this approach is one of our specialities at Design Matters. It allows us to produce completely bespoke kitchens, with a one-of-a-kind finish. Particularly appealing to private developers, who want the heart of a new property to stand out and shine, this service is also available to our private clients.

The samples we have just received include a range of colours and tones, made from the following timbers:

Walnut

Birds Eye Maple

Eucalyptus

Ash

Koto

Lati

Oak

Sucupira

Figures Anegre

Poplar

Figured Sycamore

The batches of hand-selected veneers are stained in small batches, and imported to the UK, where our supplier hand sorts the rolls to ensure that batches are colour matched, ready to be manufactured to order.

Because of the hand-made nature of this material, these veneers are strictly limited and supply can only be guaranteed once an order is placed. Rather like granite, if a client is interested in a particular finish, we need to secure the right quantity of veneer to ensure that the order can be fulfilled.

The veneers are shown here in their raw state, with a matt finish. Even at this early stage, the natural light and reflection of the grain is evident as the material is turned and viewed. These veneers will be lacquered during production for added depth and shine, and to bring the material to life.

In addition to these gorgeous natural veneers, we have a range of engineered veneer samples. These are equally precious, available in small batches only, and must be seen to be appreciated. The last batch of engineered samples are lacquered and give a good feel for the finished effect, as shown in the beautiful image below:

We are only able to show a small sample of the available patterns and colours here, and the originals are most beautiful in the flesh. We encourage you to make contact with Richard Smithies in the Design Matters office to view the full selection of samples, and to discuss your kitchen plans in more detail.

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